“For those with silk stockings, it's a very Merry Christmas indeed.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Lloyd Doggett (D-TX), Ranking Member of the House Ways and Means Tax Policy Subcommittee and a conferee to the House and Senate Conference Committee, spoke twice on the House Floor against the Republican tax bill that is expected to be voted on in the House. You can view his remarks here and here. In part, Rep. Doggett said:

"For those with silk stockings, it's a very Merry Christmas indeed. The billionaires' get stuffed. Most everyone else get coal. It's like a White Elephant gift exchange – the billionaires grab the good gifts, and the leftovers go to working families though they get the bill for everything."

"They have camouflaged this corporate tax giveaway with some changes for individuals. Who gets those? Well, it's a Who's Who of not you: The Trump family, real estate moguls, and their billionaire buddies."

Here is the full text of his two House floor speeches:

"For those with silk stockings, it's a very Merry Christmas indeed. You get coal. The billionaires get stuffed. It's like a White Elephant gift exchange – the billionaires grab the good gifts, and the leftovers go to working families though they get the bill for everything. And how many millions of dollars the Trump family will personally stuff in their pockets cannot be precisely determined only because of Republican collusion continuing to cover up Trump's personal tax returns. Excluding the public, refusing to even permit Democrats to offer an amendment, Republicans dumped this proposal out this weekend and now demand an immediate vote. The dangers lurking in this bill for economic opportunity – and for tax fairness – are very real, but they are overshadowed by the dangers to our democracy from these Trump tactics to impose his rule on America. Republicans decided the only way to pass their program was to hide it. Let's reject it today."

"The world's biggest corporate tax dodgers get the most out of this bill, a 40 percent reduction in the corporate tax rate, and the right to bring back those profits they have hidden in Caribbean hideaways for pennies on the dollar. Another loophole will encourage jobs in America to be exported abroad – a long commute to work if the job is in Europe or Asia. Of course, they have camouflaged this corporate tax giveaway with some changes for individuals. Who gets those? Well, it's a Who's Who of not you: The Trump family, real estate moguls, and their billionaire buddies. Disguised as a middle-class tax relief, this wretched bill targets the middle class with a dime of every dollar that is in the bill. What most Americans will really get is more debt, and the coming cuts that Republicans insist on making to Medicare, Medicaid, and educational opportunity. Tax fraud is criminal, but passing this fraudulent tax bill apparently is not."

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